ELL ELL Cultural Awareness and Diversity 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does 'culturally responsive teaching' mean in an ELL context?
- Teaching only about American culture to ELL students
- Using students' cultural backgrounds, experiences, and knowledge as assets to make instruction relevant and effective (Correct answer)
- Avoiding discussions of culture in academic settings
- Requiring ELLs to adopt US cultural norms immediately
Correct answer: Using students' cultural backgrounds, experiences, and knowledge as assets to make instruction relevant and effective
Culturally responsive teaching (CRT) validates and incorporates ELL students' cultural identities and prior experiences into instruction, making learning more meaningful and equitable.
Question 2: What is 'acculturation' in the context of ELL students in US schools?
- The process of learning to read and write in English
- The process by which ELL students adopt elements of US culture while navigating their home culture (Correct answer)
- The assessment of cultural knowledge
- The legal process of becoming a US citizen
Correct answer: The process by which ELL students adopt elements of US culture while navigating their home culture
Acculturation refers to the cultural adjustment process ELL students undergo as they learn to navigate US cultural norms while maintaining connections to their home culture and identity.
Question 3: What is 'culture shock' and how can teachers support ELL students experiencing it?
- A medical condition requiring hospitalization
- A feeling of disorientation and anxiety when navigating an unfamiliar culture; teachers can support students through predictable routines, peer support, and home-school connection (Correct answer)
- A strategy for teaching cultural vocabulary
- A test measuring cultural knowledge
Correct answer: A feeling of disorientation and anxiety when navigating an unfamiliar culture; teachers can support students through predictable routines, peer support, and home-school connection
Culture shock is the disorientation and distress ELL students may experience when adapting to a new cultural environment; predictable routines, welcoming classrooms, and family engagement help ease this transition.
Question 4: What is the difference between 'assimilation' and 'integration' in the context of ELL cultural identity?
- They are the same process
- Assimilation involves abandoning the home culture to adopt the new culture; integration maintains home culture identity while also participating in the new culture (Correct answer)
- Integration involves abandoning the home culture; assimilation maintains both
- Neither is relevant to ELL education
Correct answer: Assimilation involves abandoning the home culture to adopt the new culture; integration maintains home culture identity while also participating in the new culture
Assimilation requires giving up the home culture to adopt the dominant culture, while integration allows individuals to participate in both cultures simultaneously, which research supports as healthier for ELL identity.
Question 5: Why is it important for ELL teachers to avoid 'cultural stereotyping' when working with diverse student populations?
- Stereotypes help teachers plan lessons more efficiently
- Stereotypes reduce ELLs to generalizations that ignore individual backgrounds, experiences, and within-group diversity (Correct answer)
- All ELLs from the same country share the same cultural practices
- Stereotyping is only harmful in non-academic settings
Correct answer: Stereotypes reduce ELLs to generalizations that ignore individual backgrounds, experiences, and within-group diversity
Cultural stereotyping ignores the enormous diversity within any national, ethnic, or linguistic group, and treating ELLs as monolithic members of a culture fails to honor their individual identities.
Question 6: What is a 'funds of knowledge' approach in ELL education?
- Providing financial support to ELL families
- Recognizing and building upon the cultural, linguistic, and life knowledge that ELL students and families bring to school (Correct answer)
- Teaching ELLs about the US financial system
- A reading program for ELL students
Correct answer: Recognizing and building upon the cultural, linguistic, and life knowledge that ELL students and families bring to school
The funds of knowledge framework, developed by Moll and colleagues, encourages teachers to identify and incorporate the household knowledge, skills, and cultural practices ELL families possess into classroom instruction.
ELL ELL Cultural Awareness and Diversity 1
What does 'culturally responsive teaching' mean in an ELL context?